No government-wide requirements exist for the checking of references for job applicants as a part of the federal government's hiring process

By Jerry Seper
The Washington Post

WASHINGTON — No government wide requirements exist for the checking of references for job applicants as a part of the federal government's hiring process, including those who apply for law enforcement positions in the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, a report released Thursday says.

The Justice Department's office of inspector general, in a 109-page report, says law enforcement personnel at the five federal agencies accounted for more than 60 percent of the department's new hires in fiscal 2010 but Justice required reference checks only for attorney applicants.